Steam's new Creature Collector takes Palworld's "Pokémon With Guns" energy and applies it to No Man's Sky

Palworld it may still be in Early Access, but it's certainly made a strong impression already. It's true that strong doesn't necessarily mean seamless – Nintendo's controversial lawsuit against Palworld is proof enough of that. It's hard to say what the future holds for Pocketpair's action-packed spin on the creature-collecting genre, but it's clear that it's opened the door for further experimentation in the universe.

One such experimental creature collector, Voidling Boundmay be the genre's next big left-field hit. The release is planned for the first quarter of 2026, Voidling Bound still has a lot to prove, but with a smart combination No Man's Skysimple neon look, Palworldaction RPG combat and progression, Spore' s creature-evolving pattern, a Ratchet & ClankDue to the chaotic design of the encounter, it has every chance of being something powerful or at the very least memorable. The future seems bright Voidling Boundand if you're a fan of creature collectors or offbeat sci-fi experiences, then this could be right up your alley.

Voidling Bound has a demo available on Steam that currently has a comfortable 98% Overwhelmingly Positive rating.

Creature Features: Voidling Bound Promises Deep Creature-Collecting and Evolution Systems

Much of Nintendo is against it Palworld developer Pocketpair refers to a specific mechanic. In fact, the general concept of collecting fictional creatures for use in a game is a little too broad for Nintendo to really “own,” but the company has issued patents on mechanics such as summoning by throwing a spherical object – something the Japanese gaming giant was quick to point out in court. This led to the Pocketpair update Palworld remove the roll call feature and similar changes could be on the way.

While Nintendo's aggressive lawsuit here is controversial to say the least, it highlights an interesting point about the creature-collecting genre: how the player interacts with their creatures in-game massively affects the overall experience. This is the place Voidling Bound aims to stand out as it takes a decidedly original approach to capture, combat and development. Players discover and hatch Voidling eggs to grow their collection, which isn't all that innovative on its own, but the subsequent evolution-based progression system adds some secret sauce.

Each Voidling can be extensively evolved, giving it new physical characteristics, abilities, and stat boosts such as strength or defense. Unlike Pokemonhowever, Voidling BoundThe evolution system is not strictly linear: there are different branches of evolution to explore, which not only allows for more customization and variety, but also incentivizes collecting duplicate creatures as players unlock new evolutions from different trees. The amount of variation and customization possible within each species in the game is how Voidling Bound it makes up for not having as many different base creatures as the game Pokemon.

Splicing might be the most interesting mechanic in Voidling Bound

As mentioned, Voidlings originate from eggs, but Voidlings can also be created at the Splicing Station. This game mechanic allows players to mix and match different “genes” from Voidling species to create an entirely new creation. Voidling BoundThe gene system is divided into four categories:

Morphology
Modules
Abilities
Advantages

Morphology and modules are tied to the Voidling's appearance and base stats. For example, you can customize the Voidling's color and size through the Morphology category, and add defensive body parts, such as a hard outer shell, through the Modules tab. Abilities are exactly what they sound like: various powers to use in battle, each of which can be linked to their own elemental affinity. Perks are special passive abilities such as increased movement speed or an automatic secondary attack after using a main ability. All of these categories are expanded by the constant evolution of existing Voidlings, further fueling progression.

Action adventure is the biggest question mark of Voidling Bound

These systems are promising, but they all depend on them Voidling Bound's moment-to-moment gameplay. Like Palworld, Voidling Bound uses a fast-paced, real-time combat sandbox rather than a turn-based one, meaning elements like ability synergies, animations, hitboxes, battle arenas, and enemy variety all have to be fine-tuned. Yet, Voidling Bound She seems to handle her combat well – she's responsive, varied, and her abilities feel purposeful – but in a game designed with constant evolution and progression in mind, longevity will be the true test of her playability. That's not to mention the exploration of the game, which we've seen relatively little of.

But at the end of the day, these are minor, almost insignificant concerns. Voidling Bound it has all the ingredients for success, but success itself is a matter of how well those ingredients come together in the final dish. Mechanics like linking are very promising, and the fact that progression is so closely tied to gameplay and moment-to-moment customization is also very promising, so I'm definitely excited. Voidling Bound. I just hope it can continue to surprise over the course of so many hours.